Prime Minister Essam Sharaf recognized the right of the Nubians to return to their villages, according to Nubian activist and author Haggag Adul Sunday. Many Nubians were displaced from their villages near the Sudanese border by the construction of the Aswan Dam in 1964. He added “The Prime Minister decided during a meeting he held with Nubian activists today to establish the High Authority for the Development of Nubia.” Sharaf decided to study their special request to separate the districts of Nasr Nubia and Kom Ombo with the help of the Minister of Interior, according to Adul. Adul said he left at the beginning of the meeting because he rejected the presence of Nasr Nubia's local council president, considering him a holdover from the regime of former president Hosni Mubarak. The meeting, administered by Nubian director Ahmed Awwad, included Nubian activists, Mamdouh Hamza, political activist George Isaac, likely presidential candidate Hamdeen Sabbahi, and representatives of the Ministry of Electricity, Housing, Information, Culture, and Agriculture.
